What is Animate Girls Festival (AGF) ? Part 2
A guide to Japan’s largest event celebrating anime, manga, otome games, BL, merchandise, voice actors, theater and cosplay!
Hello from Manga Planet! We are back with part two of our guide to Animate Girls Festival or AGF, Japan’s largest event celebrating anime, manga, otome games, BL, merchandise, voice actors, theater and cosplay!
In our last report, we introduced some booth at the Red and Green Areas at Animate Girls Festival 2019. Here we are going to share photos from the White and Yellow Areas, as well as activities outside the main venue.
How do I get to White Area?
From the Green Area, take the exit and take the flight of stairs going down to the third and second floors of Bunka Kaikan Bldg. Don’t worry! You will find signs like this to guide you which way to go if you find yourself lost in the throng of people!
Signs like these tell you how to get to other areas
This year’s White Area was occupied by 30 companies and titles, including popular titles IDOLiSH7, TSUKIUTA. and TSUKIPRO, I-Chu, and A3!, games such as Readyyy!, Senjuushi and Alice Closet, as well as upcoming titles ARGONAVIS, number24, Futsal Boys!!!!!. Companies such as Chugai Mining, Ichiban Kuji (BANDAI SPIRITS), Pierrot, movin★on, Otomate and TMS Entertainment were also there.
Booth of Futsal Boys!!!!! a collaborative mixed media project by Bandai Namco Arts, Bandai Namco Entertainment, and diomedéa
Sorario came out to play at the Hero's Park booth! Hero's Park is a mobile game by Dank Hearts Inc. in which theme park staff transform into heroes to preserve the peace in the world.
Identity V Stage booth. You can actually sit on the chair. Identity V is a survival horror game by NetEase.
Fans queued for new goods at the TSUKIPRO booth
Multimedia project ARGONAVIS from BanG Dream! announced a TV anime adaptation and mobile game slated for 2020.
Chugai Mining selling goods of Inazuma Eleven, Given, Bungo Stray Dogs, 100 Sleeping Princes & the Kingdom of Dreams and Yowamushi Pedal: Glory Line
A3! Act! Addict! Actors! TV anime slated on January 2020. You can also see CDs released so far at the A3! booth
"Street color"-themed booth of popular rhythm game I-Chu
Fans of the title queue for event exclusive goods
Shop at DMM's newest game, a fashion simulation game called Alice Closet
Finally, Yellow Area, here I go!
You’d think you’re done after going through three Areas of Animate Girls Festival, but wait until you get to the Yellow Area, which has the most number of booths! This year, 37 exhibitors were in the Yellow Area, including companies Cybird, Rejet, KADOKAWA, Pony Canyon, Seven Net Shopping, TEAM Entertainment, ufotable, Gift, Avex Pictures, DMM pictures & DMM music, Marine Entertainment to name a few. Titles such as Utano Princesama, B-PROJECT, WAVE!!, Meiji Tokyo Renka, Crimson Clan, DANKIRA!!! – Boys, be DANCING!, REALIVE! ~Teito Kagurabutai~, Bungo Stray Dogs and many more.
Free King of Fighters for Girls plush toys up for grabs as long as the attendees show their wristbands
Booth of Crimson Clan, a dark fantasy game by by Taito and Otomate that is set in the modern age where the main characters who fight to survive with their important friends in "death game" due to a mysterious app "CRIMSON CLAN."
The Chi version of gacha panels placed where attendees can participate and win special prizes.
TOY's PLANNING TOYPLA showcasing their goods at their booth. The goods were being sold at the standalone shop at the Animate Ikebukuro Flagship store
Saku Otonomiya, Sosuke Kagura and Uta Outa from ACTORS -Songs Connection welcome you to the Pony Canyon booth
B-PROJECT fans clamored for their Supernova-themed goods available only at AGF.
I’m done (for real!)
With the main venue at least! Animate Girls Festival offers a lot of activities fans can enjoy in different venues. You can watch stage events of different titles at the Fountain Square on the B1 floor of Sunshine City. At the stage events, the cast and/or staff go on stage and talk about the title. The stage events this year were by titles Onmyoji, Ikemen Genjiden, ARGONAVIS, I★CHU PROJECT, and number24 on Saturday, and Wind Boys!, K4 Company, Kaikan Phrase CLIMAX -NEXT GENERATION-, A3!, and GETUP! GETLIVE! on Sunday.
There are activities outside, too?
Tons of activities! If you head to East Ikebukuro Central Park, there are dozens of cosplayers joining in the festivities. Watch out for our article on the cosplay part of Animate Girls Festival on Friday!
There are also booths outside with their own gimmicks! Here are some photos of booths outside the main venue.
AGF2019 tied up with popular manga Genderless Danshi ni Aisareteimasu (My Androgynous Boyfriend) by manga artist Tamekou and held a special exhibit at the Animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store which was only available during the weekend of AGF. Watch out for our report in the coming days!
Activities were being held simultaneously around the Flagship Store as well.
If you love 2D boys and cats, AGF2019 also held a Nyanko Party (Cat Party) in WACCA Ikebukuro, a shopping mall a few blocks away from the Flagship store. AGF2019 collaborated with Neco Republic, a mobile cat cafe that works with local cat protection groups in searching for foster parents for the shelter cats while aiming to be “self-propelled” business by proposing a stylish and wonderful lifestyle.
Neco Republic popup store on the first floor of WACCA Ikebukuro
That wraps up our guide (and photo report) for Animate Girls Festival 2019! We thank Animate again for letting us cover the event!
What do you think? Do you have your own AGF experience you’d like to share with us? Drop us a comment on our Twitter account!
About Animate Girls Festival 2019
Dates: November 9-10, 2019
Times: Main venue – 10:00-17:00 (16:30 last entry) *”Fast” ticket entrance: 9:00 onwards
Venue: Sunshine City (3-1-1 Higashiikebukuro, Toshima City, Tokyo)
Official site: https://agf-ikebukuro.jp/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AGF_info
If you are interested in manga and anime events in Tokyo, be sure to read our articles on JUMP Festa 2019, DEVILMAN crybaby SABBATH SHIBUYA, Cheese!’s Ikebo x Shōjo Manga Genga-ten, Land of the Lustrous Exhibit at Yurakucho Marui, Kizu Natsuki at Manga10, Yoneda Kou’s Op: The Colourless Days of Yoake Itaru Book Fair@Shosen and Himouto Umaru-chan Exhibit.
About Manga Planet: Read manga, support artists
In 2012, Manga Planet started as a joint project between Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. and FANTASISTA, INC. to research and explore the ways manga is read throughout the world. Aiming to bring new manga to fans from all over the world and support artists and the industry, Manga Planet pushes for affordability and access to manga through a subscription-based service.
Readers who subscribe to Manga Planet and pay a flat monthly fee of $6.99 will have access to our expanding library of English-language manga. To subscribe, please go to read.mangaplanet.com and create an account. More information is in our guide.
